


Closer

by ajwolf



Series: A Light in the Darkness [4]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Demon Hunters, Don't copy to another site, Intense, M/M, Magical Tattoos, Magical Violence, Non-Graphic Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-19 09:54:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20329225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ajwolf/pseuds/ajwolf
Summary: I know it breaks your heartMoved to the city in a broke down carAnd four years, no callsNow you're looking pretty in a hotel bar...Dark Seekers aren't supposed to hunt alone, but that's what Yuuri's been doing for four years ever since his partner disappeared. He knows he should give up on Viktor, but, as he sits alone at a hotel bar watching his target, his mind can't help but drift to the tattoo on his shoulder that binds him to his missing Light Guardian.Inspired by the lyrics of the song 'Closer' by The Chainsmokers.





	Closer

Yuuri adjusted the lapels of his jacket nervously as he looked around the hotel bar. A small wing of a tattoo flirted across his collarbone, but he knew, sitting in the shadows as he was, it was unlikely to be spotted from across the room. He should have just worn a crew neck T-shirt, but _ that _tattoo was one he hated to cover, so he stuck to the skin tight tank top under his blazer. Both were black, though he’d branched out and gone with navy pants.

Viktor would tease him if he saw them.

Yuuri shook his head, banishing the thought, knowing it was only plaguing him now because he kept catching a glimpse of silver in the corner of his eye. It was just some man’s watch, but it didn’t stop his eyes from darting over each time it caught the light.

Another movement across the room drew his eyes and he gritted his teeth together, spotting his query finally standing from his table and making his way casually towards the back exit. Yuuri stood and tossed a bill onto the bar to cover his drink. He knew he’d probably been made; his target was set to make an exchange here and no one had so much as approached the man’s table. 

The target had weaved a spell around his table to keep unwanted visitors away, and he’d even stolen a drink off a passing tray without a single person noticing. Except for Yuuri — Yuuri had seen every move the man had made. You couldn’t hide from a Dark Seeker, at least, not if you were _ that _ kind of wizard. Dark Seekers could taste the foulness in the air; pluck it out of a crowd and hold it in their hands without even opening their eyes.

But that didn’t mean you couldn’t spot a Seeker, and Yuuri knew as he walked through the back hallways, following quietly as he could, that he was likely walking into a trap.

He slipped the jacket off his shoulders and set it on a stack of boxes he passed. Hopefully, he’d get it back. He left his shirt where it was; that would come off easy enough when the time came. He could remove it, but...well, old habits die hard.

He stepped into the pitch black alley and surrounded his right fist with dark energy, the tattoos of his arm glowing softly as he peered into the gloom warily. What he wouldn’t give for Viktor’s light…

A bolt flew towards his head and he ducked, the spike whizzing past his ear and embedding itself into the door. Yuuri wasted no time, diving behind a dumpster and thrusting his fist into the ground as his eyes clouded over, dark magic swirling in their depths.

“Cover me, Vicchan,” he muttered as he summoned his familiar, the toy poodle springing into being with a small but serious bark. 

Yuuri covered his left hand with darkness and pressed it to his chest, destroying his shirt in an instant as the tattoos on his chest began to glow, the navy and royal hues giving him an unearthly appearance. He tilted his head as his magic fanned out around him until he felt the slight ping of a footfall. He grinned and pressed his hand further into the ground as a massive spectral hand burst from the pavement some thirty feet away, grabbing the man who’d been trying to get a vantage on him.

“Hello Georgi,” he called, waving Vicchan forward to bind Georgi in place, allowing him to pull his hands free of the earth and step forward, into the open. 

He lit a pair of dark flames in his palms; they didn’t give much light, but it was better than nothing as he took in Georgi’s furious expression. “I told you I’d catch up to you one day.”

Georgi laughed and Yuuri felt a small sliver of fear trill along his spine. “You’re a fool, Katsuki.”

“Now that’s a little harsh,” Yuuri countered as he cautiously stepped forward, flexing his magic infused hands with their large, spectral claws. “I do seem to have the upper hand here.”

“Facing me alone? Without your Guardian? I’ll stick with my earlier assessment,” Georgi said with a mirthless smirk. “How long has it been since you were abandoned? Four years was it?”

Yuuri barely resisted the urge to thrust his flames directly into Georgi’s face. “That’s not your concern.”

“Of course it is, I know how you feel after all. My Anya did the same, leaving me hollow and empty, unable to access my own magic.”

“You seem to have recovered.”

“As have you,” Georgi said with a nod towards Yuuri’s softly glowing tattoos. “Though still not to your full power. I don’t know if Viktor is doing you a favor or not.”

Yuuri ground his teeth together. He really didn’t want to think of his missing Guardian or the tattoo on his shoulder that still dimly glowed despite the absence of its owner. He’d seen Georgi after Anya left, unable to activate a single spell with his binding tattoo to Anya silent. It was clear she was blocking her connection with him; Yuuri supposed he was lucky Viktor hadn’t done the same. It meant that he could still work his spells, but it also meant he still had hope. After four years it was likely foolish, but still, his power glowed, and so he maintained his belief.

“I heard about it you know,” Georgi said with a laugh. “How you went after that demon and nearly got the whole city killed when your magic backfired. It’s no wonder Viktor left — who’d want to be associated with that?”

Yuuri couldn’t argue as he moved nearer. “How’d you get your magic back, Georgi? I know Anya’s got a new partner, but she placed your tattoo on the edge of her patterns, not over her heart as you did. You shouldn’t be able to activate your magic; there’s a reason they tell us to place our bond carefully.”

Georgi’s eyes flickered to Yuuri’s shoulder. “Like you’re so different.”

Yuuri could feel Vicchan quivering, sensing something amiss, though he couldn’t tell what.

“I _ am _ different,” Yuuri whispered. “I chose not to let heartbreak end me.”

Georgi positively cackled at that. “And so you remain here, shackled to your failed partnership. Your failed love! Everyone knew you were in love with Viktor!”

Yuuri felt as if he’d been slapped. “I wasn’t–“

“Don’t lie, Katsuki. Everyone knew how you felt. Even Viktor. But you see how weak love is? You mess up one time and he disappears, not even a phone call in four years.”

Yuuri winced, hating how much Georgi knew, as if he was reading…

Yuuri gasped. “Georgi, you didn’t!”

Georgi laughed as Vicchan’s chains suddenly fell uselessly away and Georgi stood, a huge shadow growing behind him, looking over them as Yuuri stood, mouth hanging open. There was blood trailing down Georgi’s arms.

“Shit...that’s not Blood Magic,” Yuuri whispered as the monstrous horror screamed with rage from behind Georgi. There were only a few ways Georgi could have gotten his powers back, and of course, he’d just _ had _ to choose the worse option — letting a demon hitch a ride along with his soul.

There was no time, and Yuuri knew it. He called forth every ounce of his power, both of his hands flaming with dark energy as he thrust his hands into the ground, letting his magic flow through him as his giant spectral hands burst into being around the demon, holding it back, hands gripped in battle. “Hold him, Vicchan!” He shouted as the tiny poodle familiar, dark chains clutched in his jaws, darted forward and wrapped his chains around Georgi once more.

“Fool!” Georgi cursed as he flung out his hands, ripping apart the chains and throwing Vicchan back with a yelp of pain, smacking hard into the far wall.

“Vicchan!” Yuuri cried, wrenching his hands from the ground, ignoring the demon that grew from Georgi’s heart, threatening to consume them all. “Vicchan,” he sobbed as he picked up the whimpering dog. There was a large gash across his middle where blood pooled, though none leaked out. 

“Return to me,” Yuuri summoned, but Vicchan remained where he was, whimpering softly. Yuuri tried again. “Return to me!” Nothing happened and Yuuri tore his eyes from his dying familiar, a sob tearing from his throat. “What have you done?!”

Georgi smirked, and Yuuri could see now the glowing red tattoo that had been carved over his heart, obliterating Anya’s mark, binding him to the demon he’d sold his soul to.

“Let him go!” Yuuri found himself begging. “Let me save him! You can have me, just spare Vicchan!”

“Oh Yuuri, you know your familiar can’t survive without you. What’s the point of giving you false hope? I’m just going to kill you now anyway.”

Yuuri clutched Vicchan to his chest, tears streaming down his face as he felt the demon surge forward toward him, ready to consume his soul.

“I’m sorry, Vicchan,” he cried. “I’m sorry, Vitya,” he whispered as he closed his eyes and waited for death.

But it didn’t come. Instead of brimstone and claws, there was a bright, white light and a scream of rage, followed by the demon’s own cry of pain, piercing Yuuri’s ears. His eyes flew open and his mouth followed in shock as there in front of him stood Viktor, a massive shield of light bursting before him.

“Go, Makka! Help them!” Viktor ordered, and his own poodle familiar burst into being, racing over to Yuuri and greeting him with a friendly lick.

“Makka,” Yuuri breathed, unable to believe his eyes. “Viktor.”

“I’m sorry I took so long, Yuuri,” Viktor said softly. Holy light surged from his hands as his magenta colored tattoos glowed brighter than Yuuri had ever seen them all along his back. “I had to find a way to protect you. I failed you once and I wasn’t going to let it happen again!”

“_ What _?” Yuuri’s grew wide as his eyes took in the expanse of new tattoos across Viktor’s back, lacing up over his shoulders and onto his chest, out of Yuuri’s sight for the moment.

A warmth spread over his arms and Yuuri looked down as before his eyes Vicchan’s wounds fused back together with holy light as Makka nuzzled her old friend. Yuuri stared in awe, never having seen such a thing before.

Vicchan barked as the last of the wound evaporated from his skin and he bounced up, growling towards the demon, his shadow chains already clutched in his jaws.

Yuuri hesitated for a second before standing and stepping forward until he was at Viktor’s side, turning to take Viktor in fully. His hair was long, like it had been when he was younger, tied up in a messy bun, and he was wearing clothes that were clearly borrowed. Where _ had _ he come from?

But the real shock was the new tattoos glowing along every inch of his skin, all leading intricately to the tattoo placed over his heart where each trail of ink swirled together to create Yuuri’s name. He wrenched his face up to meet Viktor’s eyes, disbelief flooding through his veins as he took in Viktor’s love filled eyes, glistening softly with unshed tears of joy now that they were finally reunited.

“Shall we take down this possessed idiot?” Viktor asked with a hopeful smile on his face.

Yuuri grinned back at him, unable to help the joyful laugh that slipped from his lips as his own tattoos flared to life once more, as his dark claw covered his hands. “Let’s do this,” Yuuri said, his eyes turning black as night.

Viktor nodded as he began to surge forward. “It’s good to be home, zolotse.”

**Four Years Earlier**

Viktor slammed the glass against the counter. 

_ Three months. _

That’s how long it had been since that damn, cursed job in Tucson. That’s how long Yuuri has been asleep, trapped in that coma. The healers said he’d wake up eventually, just a side effect of the massive amount of magical power he’d used in the fight to save their lives. 

“Another,” Viktor growled as he tried to burn the images of that night from his mind with vodka and rage. The night he’d failed the only person he’s ever cared about. 

_ Damn it. _

The bartender didn’t argue, just setting down another shot which Viktor quickly threw back. He was thinking of ordering another when a hand pressed down on his wrist. He turned at blinked blearily at his boss and mentor, Yakov.

“You’ve had enough, Vitya.”

“Is Yuuri awake?”

Yakov shook his head.

“Then I haven’t had enough,” Viktor growled with another nod towards the bartender who grimaced at him.

“I’m cutting you off after this, Nikiforov. Yuuri would never forgive me if I single-handedly destroyed your liver.”

Viktor scowled but didn’t protest, taking his time to nurse the drink. He didn’t speak; he knew Yakov was here for a reason, one that was sure to be made clear to him sooner or later.

“We need you back in the field,” Yakov said softly.

“Is Yuuri awake yet?” Viktor said with a sneer and Yakov’s eyebrows knitted.

“He will be Vitya and you know that. You spoke to Lilia this morning. Yuuri’s magical energy is nearly restored; he should be waking within the week. He’ll need some further recovery time, but there’s no reason you can’t get back out there. You need _ something _.”

“I _ need _ to be able to protect my partner,” he spat. “I’m a Light Guardian and my Dark Seeker is in a _ fucking _coma!”

Yakov suddenly gripped his wrist _ hard _ , yanking Viktor from his stool and out the door of the bar, tossing him against the wall. “Wake up, Vitya! How is _ this _ helping Katsuki? What is the hell is the matter with you?!”

The dam broke. Great sobs wretched from Viktor’s chest as he crumbled to the ground. “I failed him, Yakov,” he whispered through the tears. “I promised him I’d always keep him safe and I failed him.” he held out his hands, pulling his magic to the surface watching the tattoos of his arms flicker uselessly, not even enough power to conjure his shield. Yakov’s eyes widened in surprise. 

“You see, Yakov?” Viktor sniffled miserably. “This is why I can’t go back out there; I may not have sealed his name over my heart, but to my heart I have. I’m in love with him and I can’t forgive myself for failing to protect him.”

He dissolved back into tears, fist clenching bitterly in frustration. There was a soft crunching of gravel as Yakov kneeled down beside him. “What if you could?” Viktor looked up confused and Yakov continued. “What if you could protect Yuuri; find a power strong enough to bring you back together and ensure you’ll never be parted again?”

“How?!” Viktor begged, hands reaching forward as if to grab onto the gift Yakov offered. His old mentor looked conflicted as if he was already regretting what he was suggesting.

“It’s not without risks, Vitya. You’ll have to travel, apart from Yuuri, for a time. It could take years, and in that time I won’t be able to tell him where you’re going. He’ll believe you left him.”

“Why?”

“Because you’ll be going someplace he can’t follow, and he will be your lifeline back. If you return, the two of you will be the strongest team the world has seen, but if you fail – if either of you falters in your devotion to one another for even a moment – you won’t have a way home.”

Viktor blinked. “Either of us?”

“A seed of your magic is in his heart. It’s the only thing that kept him alive when he performed that spell. Lilia says it’s caused by someone performing an act of the purest love. He was willing to give his life for you, and you were willing to do the same for him. His magic saved you from the onslaught of demons, and your magic saved him from dying. His magic is within you as well, a symbol of your bond; it’s likely what is causing your magic to fail.

“We need to strengthen that bond. It would require you to place his name over your heart and trust that he will never give up on you.”

Viktor hesitated, a hand over his heart, his fingers gripping the fabric covering his skin as he took in a deep breath. “I believe in him Yakov, tell me what I must do.”

  


**Present**

The battle was fierce; great sparks of light bursting from the dark as Viktor’s holy light deflected the demon’s attacks. Yuuri could hear the two familiars distracting Georgi, but he knew he had to trust their safety to Viktor as he wove his spells around the demon. His whole being was covered in darkness, hands plunged deep in the earth as his giant claws surrounded the struggling demon, slowly tearing at its existence.

“Vicchan!” Yuuri cried as he felt the demon’s soul break free. His familiar dashed across the ground, his chains catching the broken soul and securing it within the magical bonds. Yuuri felt the chains latch shut and pulled his magic in tight as Georgi screamed, his own magic bursting with rage, unleashing hell on Viktor who stood firm, shield held in front of him, never wavering. 

Yuuri squeezed and pulled until finally, the demon’s magic broke free and crystallized right in his hand. “Now Viktor!” He called.

“Go Makka!” Viktor commanded as he and his familiar rushed forward to Georgi. They were no longer battling him, but protecting him as his soul lay split open before them, a void left in the place the demon had been.

Viktor cast a barrier around them all, their movements a well practiced dance that neither of them had forgotten in the time they’d been apart. Yuuri’s eyes clouded completely with his dark magic as he pressed his hands into the ground, searching out the demons that were already streaming towards them, drawn to the bared soul before them. 

“How long till sunrise?” He asked. He’d been without Viktor for so long he’d forgotten how much easier this was with a Guardian to protect him as he lashed his demonic hands out from the ground all around them, crushing any fiends that approached them. Vicchan was darting this way and that, binding the lesser demons that approached. They were an efficient team, familiar and wizard, but knowing Viktor and Makka had their backs made the weight of the task so much lighter. Viktor’s magic couldn’t destroy the demons, but it could negate any attacks until Yuuri could deal with them.

It made waiting out the dawn so much easier.

Only...he cleared his eyes as he felt a strange sense of magic whisper over his skin. He turned and saw Makka, leaning over Georgi, the gash along his soul healing right before his eyes.

“We won’t need to wait for the dawn anymore,” Viktor said with a quiet, slightly strained voice.

Yuuri’s mouth fell open as he pulled his hands from the ground. “You learned to seal their wounds! That’s what you did to Vicchan too, isn’t it? That’s why he couldn’t return to me! His soul was damaged.”

Viktor nodded. “That night, my barriers couldn’t hold, and the demons swarmed us. They would have killed us all, but you turned yourself into a bomb and killed every demon in the city and nearly destroyed yourself. I hated myself for failing you, for putting you in a situation where you needed to do something so drastic. I left to find the magic that would let me protect you until the sun rose, no matter the army against us, so you’d never be so exposed again. But I found so much more.”

Viktor reached out and pressed his hand to Yuuri’s cheek, his magic flaring as Yuuri’s eyes widened as he finally felt it, the depths of Viktor’s feelings for him.

“You love me.”

A single tear tracked down Viktor’s cheek. “I always have. You’re the greatest Dark Seeker in a generation, and I only hoped to keep up with you. I’m sorry it took me so long to come home.”

Yuuri couldn’t help but laugh, the stars twinkling brightly overhead, and the taste of Light along his tongue as Viktor’s magic finished its work. “I love you, Vitya.”

Viktor crushed their lips together in a searing kiss, full of promise. Yuuri felt himself smile into the kiss as he pressed a hand to his own chest, his magic flaring as he took their love for one another and gave it form. When he pulled back a new tattoo decorated his skin; Viktor’s name, forever binding them together.

“Stay by my side,” Yuuri whispered and Viktor could do nothing more than to kiss him once more, as light and dark finally reunited as one. 

“Until the end.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to the Isekai team for giving me the chance to write this fic!
> 
> Art by the lovely [@phyxalia](https://twitter.com/phyxalia)!!
> 
> I've been so looking forward to sharing this next part of this series with you guys! Just one more part to go - Tucson. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
